Navy, Lockheed Labor To Fix LCS; POGO Unconvinced
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The Navy declared LCS-1 Freedom “fit for service” yesterday and on track for next year’s deployment to Singapore, while lead contractor Lockheed Martin says LCS-1’s shortfalls are largely fixed in the redesigned LCS-3, Fort Worth — but watchdog group POGO, whose reports have fueled Congressional skepticism, still has its doubts. “Earlier this month we have… Keep reading →
Army Mulls $1.7 Billion Effort To Replace 3,000 M113s
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WASHINGTON: On the margins of the $550-plus billion defense budget, the Army and the defense industry are quietly working on a program that could potentially replace 3,000 geriatric armored vehicles. So far, in this year’s budget, Congress is going along, but the real money — and the real battle — loom in the years to… Keep reading →
Why Senate, House Authorizers Both Added Dough For Armor
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WASHINGTON: It’s spring, and 70-ton Marine Corps M1 tanks rumble through the flowers in southern Afghanistan (pictured above), while at home, both chambers of Congress are adding funds for armored vehicles to the Pentagon spending bill. It may seem counter-intuitive that a nation shifting from hearts-and-minds counterinsurgency to “AirSea Battle” in the Pacific would need… Keep reading →
Navy Needs Both LCS Versions For War With China, Iran; Navy UnderSec Defends Program
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WASHINGTON: While the Littoral Combat Ship is not suited for the front lines of a war with China, it would provide vital protection to US supply lines in such conflict, said Under Secretary of the Navy Robert Work, and against Iran, LCS would be in the battle from “day one,” with eight LCSs ultimately operating… Keep reading →
Behind The Curtain: Amendment To Limit JTRS Competition Fails
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CAPITOL HILL: Several defense giants battled today over $500 million in 2013 funding for a radio program as the House defense policy bill headed to the floor. The fight centered on two versions of the Joint Tactical Radio System, the Mid-Tier Networking Vehicular Radio MNVR (son of GMR) and the HMS tactical radio. Company lawyers… Keep reading →
Admirals Rally Round LCS As HASC Attacks; Lockheed Takes Fire, General Dynamics Escapes
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WASHINGTON: Even as two Navy admirals praised the Littoral Combat Ship to reporters in a hastily convened conference call, the House Armed Services Committee ordered the Government Accountability Office to investigate the program. [CORRECTED (9 p.m. Wednesday) To Reflect That Navy Had Planned Interview For More Than A Week] “It’s disturbing that the Navy would… Keep reading →
EXCLUSIVE: Navy Still Thrashing Out LCS Tactics, Design, Top Admiral Acknowledges
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PENTAGON: There are a lot of questions about the Navy’s new Littoral Combat Ships, high-tech vessels that are smaller, faster, more flexible, and more vulnerable to damage than traditional frigates or destroyers. In an exclusive interview with Breaking Defense, the Navy’s top surface-warships expert frankly acknowledged that they’re still working on the answers. Everything… Keep reading →
HASC Demands Navy ‘Fess Up On LCS Problems
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WASHINGTON: In an otherwise pro-forma meeting to approve legislative language for the 2013 national defense authorization, the Seapower panel of the House Armed Services Committee paused to add just one amendment to the otherwise unmodified bill: a provision by California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter demanding that the Navy ‘fess up to Congress on problems with… Keep reading →
Navy Didn’t Fudge Ship Numbers, UnderSec Work Says
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NATIONAL HARBOR, MD [updated 7:30 am Thursday 19 April with Congressional comment and Raymond Pritchett’s retraction] : The smartest man in the Department of the Navy, Under Secretary Robert O. Work, erupted today in a passionate defense of the service’s integrity in how it counts its ships and of the controversial Littoral Combat Ship‘s place… Keep reading →
Debate Boils Over Whether Army’s JTRS Radio Can Be Jammed
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The Army’s attempt to reboot its troubled Ground Mobile Radio program has hit yet another snag, with accusations that the revised requirements omit a crucial capability to protect soldiers’ signals from enemy jamming and accidental interference. As a result, wrote defense analyst, consultant, and AOL contributor Loren Thompson in a recent blog post, “soldiers dependent… Keep reading →